Gaming establishments (e.g., casinos) rely heavily on slot machines and video gaming devices as a substantial source of income. In regulated gaming jurisdictions, e.g., Las Vegas, Nev., gaming regulations dictate the minimum levels that a video gaming device must pay out, as a percentage of money wagered by players playing the machine, e.g., 90% minimum. Thus, if a machine is said to pay 95%, then the machine pays at least $0.95 in winnings for every $1.00 wagered in the machine. While the profit ratio appears slim, casinos principally rely on the volume of money played for their profits. Because each video gaming machine can be considered a relatively fixed cost (maintenance and IP licenses represent minimal ongoing costs), the more money played in each machine, the more a casino's profits.
As the popularity of video slot machines (video gaming) grows, and more games are offered in the marketplace, video slot/gaming developers must provide innovative game play and/or payout methodology to maintain player interest in a given video gaming machine. Further, in order to maximize profit, casinos are continually seeking new and innovative games to keep players' interest, lest the player wander off into someone else's casino. Thus, there is a continual need in the art to provide new game play methods, bonuses, mini-games, payout methodology, and the like, in video gaming devices.